An Emery in Pencil Shavings

I was gifted this rather lovely Liberty print by my Dad for Christmas. As soon as I saw it I knew I wanted it to be an Emery dress! It's the perfect print for a teacher to wear too, isn't it?

I have made the Emery before so no adjustments were needed which made it a pretty quick project. I decided to go for the collar this time instead of the bow. I had reservations about the collar which seems large on some Emery dresses but I think that the heavy pattern of the fabric helps it to blend in and alleviate this.

I was going through a 'sew the stash' phase which means that it is lined in a very boring grey lining fabric. I regret this decision as having my makes beautiful inside and out is really important to me.

As ever, the cheery on top of the Emery dress are the pockets! This dress is definitely going to become one of my favourites.

I hope you all have a great bank holiday weekend. Happy sewing x

Scrumptious Saiph

I have been ogling the Paper Cut Saiph pattern for a while so I decided that it was time to take the plunge and start sewing. I bought a spotty drapey fabric from Walthamstow market. On reflection the pattern of the fabric is a little too loud for me but I'm still pleased with the dress.

The pattern is actually a tunic, which I don't tend to wear so I decided to lengthen the bodice pattern piece to make it into a dress instead. I originally made the dress with long sleeves but the pattern of the fabric seemed over whelming on me so I shortened them into three quarter length before hemming.

The dress has a gorgeous peplum bottom which is made using a full circle. Because of this it has lots of movement which I love.

The pattern would be great for beginners (or zip haters) as is has a button back using a rouleau loop. I used a pretty heart button which I had in my stash.

As the peplum is made using a full circle I finished the hem using satin bias binding. I haven't used satin bias binding before but it was absolutely perfect for the drapey fabric as it doesn't restrict it at all. I will definitely be adding more satin bias binding to my stash!

Happy sewing!

Linden Sweatshirt Hack

I absolutely fell in love with a sweatshirt in Liberty about a year ago. It had a rather large price tag which I just couldn't justify so I sadly left it behind. This winter however, I decided to try and make my own using the Grainline Linden pattern and I couldn't be happier!

This was the original, I think that they're pretty closely matched!

The Linden pattern itself was a dream to work with and made up quickly and easily. I sewed it together using an overlocker but it could easily be made using a sewing machine. When topstitching my sewing machine initially struggled with feeding the fleecy back through so I attached my walking foot which worked much better.

I adapted the pattern by flaring it out at the sides to alter the shape. The peplum was made using a double layer of black organza which I cut from the width of the fabric, gathered then hand stitched onto the hem.

I'm really pleased with this make, there will definitely be a few more Linden sweatshirts appearing in my wardrobe!

Happy sewing!

Let the spring sewing commence...

It feels slightly ridiculous to be sharing this make with you today especially as it has been snowing only this morning! But I have decided to begin sewing some spring/summery wardrobe pieces whilst also still trying to wade my way through my wool stash (far too large for this time of year of course) before I have to put it away for a few months.

I have been busy sewing another Deer and Doe Datura. I love this pattern, it sews together beautifully and is constructed so that it is gorgeous both inside and out. Since I began sewing there has been a big influx of pattern into my wardrobe and I'm lacking plains to wear with them so this was a tactical make!

It's made using a cream cotton fabric which has an embellished edge. Datura originally has a curved hem which wouldn't have worked with this fabric so I extended the top to the lowest point the whole way around. I was concerned that it would look boxy but I think it actually looks less boxy than the original design.

Pattern matching is definitely not a strong point of mine so I'm pretty pleased with the match if the curves at the back and side. I used some heart buttons from my button stash to finish the back of the top.

I have no doubt that that this will become a wardrobe staple (when it stops snowing and raining!). Happy sewing x